A Panther's Sharpest Claw
by MagicNo333
Summary: My first story. A newcomer to SkyClan, Panther is haunted by strange dreams. How does this Cloudstar cat know her? While wondering about a love for her mentor she tries to fit in, but when a traitor emerges and blames her, can she really live in SkyClan?
1. Allegiances

**SkyClan:**

**Leader:**Leafstar- brown-and-cream tabby she-cat with amber eyes

**Deputy:**Sharpclaw- dark ginger tom

**Medicine cat: **Echosong- silver tabby she-cat with green eyes

**Warriors:**

Patchfoot- black-and-white tom

**Apprentice, Bouncepaw**

Clovertail- light brown she-cat with white belly and legs

Sparrowpelt**-**dark brown tabby tom

**Apprentice, Tinypaw**

Cherrytail- tortoiseshell she-cat

**Apprentice, Rockpaw**

**Apprentices:**

Bouncepaw- ginger tom

Tinypaw- small white she-cat

Rockpaw- black tom

**Queens:**

Petalnose- pale gray she-cat

kits:

Sagekit- pale gray tom

Mintkit- gray tabby she-cat

**Rogues:**

Tangle- dark, ragged tabby tom

Crystal- tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes and a crippled leg

Speedy- white tom with black feet

Secret- large dark brown tabby tom with green eyes and a white underbelly and small patch on throat

Starling-black she-cat with multicolored flecks and purple eyes

Blaze- mottled ginger tom with dark amber eyes

Dragon-big black, patterned like scales, tom, flame colored ginger muzzle, reddish amber eyes

Freeze- black tom with ice-blue eyes and a white underbelly and paws

Frozen- silvery white tom, ice-blue eyes

Sparkle- white she-cat with light blue eyes and silver flecks

Burn- dark gray tabby and white tom, dark amber eyes

Duck- yellow ginger tom, orange muzzle with blue eyes

Wren- small, dark brown she-cat with a pale underbelly and green eyes

Magpie- black and white magpie patterned she-cat

Stoat- thin, long-bodied brown she-cat

Fang- aging dark tabby tom, has really long canine teeth that make him look like a vampire, yellow eyes

Epsilon- brown marble tom

Ocelot- yellow-ginger she-cat with black rosettes and green eyes

Glitter- snow marble she-cat, stunning blue eyes

Forest- brown marble tom with black markings and green eyes

Mouseclaw- light ginger she-cat with darker stripes, with a scar across her eye, mate: Eaglestorm

Shadowstalker- massive, long-furred black and dark gray tom, icy-gray eyes, and long claws

Dream- white she-cat, golden colored ears, paws, paw-tips, and underbelly, bright blue eyes 


	2. Chapter 1

A black she-cat, one dark blue eye, one ice-blue, with a white underbelly flecked with black, darker spots and tabby stripes barely visible all around, a white spot on the back of each ear, white tail tip and paw-tips, silver claws with black flecks, and very sharp white fangs. That is what I look like. My name is Panther. This is my story.

It began when I was hunting near the Abandoned Twoleg Place, and I noticed I didn't hear any squeaks from the rats. Maybe they were finally gone. I crouched down low, my belly fur brushing the grass. I rushed towards the forest area by the gorge; why, I didn't know. It just seemed safer, or maybe it was that something very important would happen there, something important for my destiny.

In my dreams, there were often cats prowling around, whispering my name in a mist. Every time I got close, though, they vanished. It irritated me extremely, and I came to a point where I had to eat poppy seeds to sleep, and then I would wake up at sunset, when the day is at its most beautiful.

Now as I raced over the ground, a wall of scents suddenly hit me, as though I sprinted right into it. It almost pushed me back, but I couldn't stop. I slowed down after that, the smell continuing for a while. I opened my mouth and tasted the air. My ears pricked as I swiftly shut my jaws.

Four cats together? Guarding a large territory by the cliff? What was this about? I had to find out, but I couldn't be caught. I padded to a tree, and leaped into the first hole. There was a small family of squirrels living in there that I quickly ate. Alive. So? What's so bad about that? It gets it over with faster.

I whipped around and lay down, licking my muzzle. I waited. The sun sunk down beneath the sky, and still I waited. The moon rose to its full height. I was still waiting. _Just come already! _I wanted to scream out. But I couldn't. If I did... Well, it wouldn't be too pretty for me, anyway.

As the sun began to rise, I yawned and my belly growled. I would usually be ready to sleep now, but I had to see what was up with this group of cats claiming such a large territory. The only thing I used to have to deal with was that annoying rouge, Tangle. I wanted to kill him so badly... Hold on. Dawn's here. I can smell the cats. A different four, but four all the same.

They padded into view: a large dark ginger tom, a dark brown tabby tom, a light brown she-cat with a white belly and legs, and a small white she-cat. I opened my mouth. They had a similar scent; were they kin?

I was about to sleep, to think about this newfound knowledge, when the leader, the large dark ginger tom, whirled his head to stare straight at the tree I was in. I crept back, hoping he didn't see me. He didn't say anything, he just flicked his tail and jumped, reaching my hole effortlessly. His muscles seemed to ripple under his sleek pelt, and his eyes were burning like flames. I crouched down, and lowered my head.

"Stand up, trespasser," he hissed. I whimpered. "Get up!" I obeyed, which was unusual for me. His eyes traveled over me, and he sniffed me. I regained some of my courage and snarled at him. Then he did the most amazing thing: He laughed!

He threw his head back and laughed. "What?" I growled, unsheathing my claws. "Shut up!"

"What's your name, loner?" he demanded, his mirth disappearing soon.

"What's yours?" I countered.

"You tell me, and I won't tear your throat out," he snapped.

"Panther. What's yours?" I repeated.

"Sharpclaw. Now come on, get down from this tree. Sparrowpelt," he yowled down.

"Yes, Sharpclaw?"

"Be ready to hold a rouge. I'm going to send her down."

"Of course," was the reply.

"Now, Panther, you're going to jump down. Can you?"

"How do you think I got up here without any claw-marks?" I growled.

"Good." He smiled faintly. "Go, now, or I'll push you."

I lashed my tail and went to the edge. The three others were staring up at me. I sighed, and relaxed my tense muscles. I immediately felt my flank head butted and I fell forward with a yowl.

"Piece of fox-dung," I called up. He gracefully jumped down, and groomed his face.

"Her name's Panther. I think we should take her to Leafstar," he meowed once he was finished. "One rouge is enough– we don't need to continue the patrol unless we take the long way back home."

The dark tabby nodded. "Did you hear that, Tinypaw? You're learning more about the territory still."

"Yes, Sparrowpelt," the small white she-cat mewed.

Sharpclaw? Tinypaw? Sparrowpelt? What kind of names are these?

"We'll go the shorter way," Sharpclaw decided. "She might try to run away if we went a

longer way. Sparrowpelt, take Tinypaw and renew the scent markings. If something comes that you can't handle, run straight to the gorge and report to either me or Leafstar." The dark tabby tom nodded and flicked his tail. The small she-cat followed him, and flicked her ear good-bye to us.

"Can I hunt, Sharpclaw?"

"No, Clovertail. I need you here to watch out while I _escort_ our new friend."

My tail tip twitched and I just repressed a snarl. I curled my lip in disgust instead. The dark ginger tom glanced at me, but no emotion seemed to show in his eyes. The light she-cat named Clovertail lead the way while Sharpclaw was behind me. I could feel his gaze burning into my back, but I gathered my dignity and raised my head and ignored it.

As we were approaching a big cliff-thing that cats had to jump to reach, I glanced to my right. Twolegplace. Maybe I had a chance of escaping. I heard a chuckle behind me and whipped my head around. The ginger tom was doing that again?

"There's no chance; just give it up. Besides, you'll thank us later," he mewed. I glared at him and he shrugged his shoulders.

I stopped. Clovertail didn't notice. Sharpclaw came up next to me. I turned to him and put a forepaw on his shoulder. He had a puzzled look on his face. I turned completely, so my whole body was facing him.

"I'm sorry; you're right. I shouldn't try to run away," I mewed. He raised an eyebrow. I put my other forepaw on his shoulder.

I pushed down at the same time I kicked up with my hind legs. I leaped over the tom, who was quickly rising to his paws.

"Clovertail!" he snapped. "Catch her!"

He bounded after me. I knew he would catch up, so I swerved to the right. When he got close again I suddenly stopped so he flew by me. I turned to the left now and jumped over Clovertail, who tried to scratch my belly, but I kicked her paw away in the air. I saw her land roughly, and chuckled. But as I looked forward again, I tackled into a cream and brown tabby she-cat. When I rolled away, I noticed a smaller black tom and a tortoiseshell she-cat. Oops.

"Is this what Tinypaw and Sparrowpelt were telling me about?" the she-cat I tackled meowed.

"Yes, Leafstar," Sharpclaw mewed, dipping his head respectfully. Clovertail limped over, panting.

"Did you twist your paw?" Leafstar asked.

"I-I think so," Clovertail told her between breaths.

"Cherrytail, Rockpaw, take Clovertail back to camp. You should see Echosong about this." Clovertail nodded and followed the other two.

"We found a rouge on our territory," Sharpclaw pointed out. Kinda obvious, huh?

"What's your name, loner?" she asked, sounding much nicer than Sharpclaw.

"Panther."

"Panther," she repeated. "Nice. What's a Panther?"

"Well, I've heard from cats from across the Long Water that it's like a lion only without a mane. It is also called a puma, mountain lion, cougar, and many other things. Some use it to refer to the jaguars, which are just bigger leopards. In fact, some cats say black jaguars and black leopards are also called panthers. That's where I get my name. My mother spent a lot of time by the Boat Place. That's where she met my father."

"She asked what it was, not your whole life story," Sharpclaw snarled.

"I didn't give her my whole life story, but if you want to know, I'll tell you," I snapped.

"Stop it. Now, Panther, follow me." I shot a glare at the ginger cat, but obeyed. He narrowed his eyes.

We went down some cliffs, into the gorge. Leafstar lead us to a large pile of rocks; very big rocks. I wondered why she was stepping up and standing there, and I wasn't sure if I should follow. I felt a push behind me and saw Sharpclaw. I curled my lip and jumped to the highest rock to stand next to the tabby.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Rockpile for a Clan meeting," Leafstar yowled. Once all the cats were there she continued, "I'm sure a lot of you have heard about the loner Sharpclaw found on our territory. Her name is Panther, and I think she should join SkyClan. Do SkyClan agree?"

There were yowls. Leafstar smiled. "Good. You are dismissed. Sharpclaw, take Panther to my den."

Sharpclaw dipped his head and ordered me. "Come on, Panther." I blinked. He used my name in a non-sarcastic or mean way? "Well? Have your paws turned into rock? Move!" I shook myself and followed him.

He lead me back the way we came in. He stopped briefly at the big rock I had noticed.

"We'll wait for Leafstar outside her den."

"No, please go in." The tabby she-cat approached us. I let her go in first, but I cut the ginger cat off to get in before him. He growled, and I twitched my ear. It was rather large inside and the floor sandy. There was one dip in it, lined with moss and maybe a feather or two. Leafstar sat in the nest and gestured with her tail for me to do the same.

"What do you mean by 'join'?" I blurted out.

"You can become part of this Clan: SkyClan. You would take an apprentice name first, then you would learn and later gain your warrior name. You may even become deputy and later leader. If you were a leader you would gain nine lives. Of course you may choose the path of medicine cat and be taught by Echosong. You would learn the herbs and healing things. Either way, you must live by the warrior code and protect your Clan at the cost of your life."

"I like living by myself, thanks," I replied coldly.

"The others have promised the same thing. It is a hard life sometimes, but it is worth it. Your name will be remember always as part of the cats that helped rebuild SkyClan," Leafstar continued. I thought I saw a glint of desperation in her eye, and blinked, but there was nothing there.

"If she doesn't join, where will the prisoners go? She could be our first," Sharpclaw inquired, growling at me for the last sentence. I narrowed my eyes and pulled my lips back in the beginnings of a snarl.

"No, Sharpclaw. Calm down. She'll see what life is like here, then we'll ask again in two moons."

"_Two moons_!" Sharpclaw and I gasped at the same time.

"Fine! How about half a moon, though?" I suggested.

"One and a half."

"One."

"Fine." I hid my smile by licking my chest fur. I glanced at Sharpclaw; he was smoldering. I was proud I negotiated with the leader. "Panther will stay for one moon until she decides. I'll announce it. Sharpclaw, stay here. I would prefer it if you two were better off if you want to become Clanmates." The tabby padded out.

"Hi," I growled.

"Hello," he snarled. "Do you like it here?"

"I don't know. Do I?" I hissed. He unsheathed his claws and slashed at the wall.

"Why am I even trying! Cats like you wouldn't join even if their life depended on it; you're stupid like that!"

"Are you sure about that?"

He stopped his scratching and turned to me. "What?"

"Nothing."

"No, really." He walked over and sat down next to me. "What did you say?"

"I said 'Are you sure about that'," I answered. "Okay?"

"It's fine," he responded. I wasn't expecting that. "You know, if you're joining, why don't you learn some Clan customs? One is called sharing tongues. Two cats groom each other and talk about what's going on, or whatever."

"Sharing tongues, huh? Sounds like it could be nice." He smiled. "But I think I'll have to join first."

"You'll join?"

"I guess. Does my life depend on it?"

"So I just told them about it," a cream and brown tabby meowed, entering. "Are you two better off?"

"Can I join now?" I asked suddenly. Sharpclaw's ears pricked.

"Of course. How about tomorrow?" An amused smile played on the leader's lips and her eyes danced with laughter. She twitched her whiskers happily. I dipped my head to her. The tomcat leaped in the air.

"Sorry; there was a spider on my tail," he apologized. Leafstar nodded.

"Panther, you'll sleep with the apprentices. I know you're older than they are, you're about Sparrowpelt's and Cherrytail's age, but you'll be living in there once you join. I already know who your mentor will be."

"I'll show her where it is," Sharpclaw offered swiftly.

"Of course."

He nodded and flicked his tail for me to follow. I trotted after him, and he lead me down past the Rockpile and across some rocks.

"This is it," he meowed, indicating to a hole in the side of a cliff with a path on it. "Go on in."

I slipped in, and looked around. It was mostly dark, but not impossible to know where I was. I sniffed the small dip in front of me. No scent. I bit something soft on the wall and pulled it down. Moss. I lined the nest, circled in it, and lay down.

"Thank you, Sharpclaw," I called out.

"You're welcome," he replied. "I'm going to the warriors' den. See you tomorrow."

I yawned and rested my head on my paws. I didn't know what time it was, but I had gone more than a day without sleep. My eyes were drooping as I drifted off.

A small gray and white tom approached me. He had pale blue eyes that seemed to dig into me. "Panther," he greeted.

"Hello, visitor. I can finally see you. What's your name?"

"Straightforward, just like she was," he meowed. He let out a small laugh. "Yes, you are exactly like her, even in looks."

"Who are _you_, though?" I pestered.

"My name is Cloudstar," he replied. He waved his tail. "I was once leader of SkyClan, but we were driven out by the other four Clans. The ThunderClan leader, Firestar, came out here with his mate, Sandstorm, and restored SkyClan, killing the rats that drove the original out."

"And I need to know this because...?"

"Because you are now a part of SkyClan, Panther."

"Not yet," I reminded the starry warrior. He rolled his eyes.

"But you must be prepared," he meowed in an ominous voice.

"Prepared for what?"

"For–" He stopped suddenly. I felt my side being prodded. "Wake up," he meowed in a voice not his. It became more exasperated as he continued. "Come on, wake up! What are you, a bat? Do you sleep in until sunhigh, or something? Wake up!"

Cloudstar nodded and flicked his tail. I closed my eyes, and blinked them open to slits. Three cats were standing over me and the ginger one was poking me with his paw and growling.

"Wha–?" I groaned.

"Get up! Your ceremony is today. In the morning," he added.

"Thanks," I grunted, heaving myself to my paws. I trudged outside, the light momentarily blinding me until my eyes adjusted.

I yawned and walked slowly to the Rockpile to wait for Leafstar. A cat hopped in front of me. A dark ginger tom; Sharpclaw, I recalled, from yesterday.

"Hey, Panther," he greeted. He stretched hugely, then yawned. "Your ceremony's today."

"So I remember," I replied sleepily. "Sorry to be rude, but I'm usually nocturnal."

"No, you weren't rude; if you _were_rude, I'd have to punish you after your ceremony."

"How could you do that?" I asked, still a bit groggy.

"I'm Clan deputy. I get to be in charge. I'm second only to Leafstar. But I'm third to Echosong," he added unhappily.

"Yeah, uh, nice, I think." I snored a moment, my eyelids closing again. I felt a claw stab me, though, and I jumped. "I DIDN'T DO IT!"

"Relax, I just had to wake you up," Sharpclaw meowed.

"Sorry. I wonder if I can sleep again once I'm an apprentice."

"It depends on your mentor; they might have you take poppy seeds so you sleep for a whole day. Remember, you can't be nocturnal here."

"Yeah. Okay." My head suddenly jerked up. "I can't?! Why? That's my camouflage, darkness!"

"Well, here in a Clan we work together. You'd have to be ready to fight any time, day or night. Your endurance should grow here, so you can go longer without sleep," the deputy explained.

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Rockpile for a Clan meeting."

I looked up. Leafstar stood on the rock like a single tree in a field with low grass. She looked straight at me.

"Today we welcome a loner who wishes to join us, but first she must learn our ways. Panther. From this day forward, until she had received her warrior name will be called Pantherpaw. Sharpclaw, you are Clan deputy and have had an apprentice before. Pass all you know to this apprentice." Sharpclaw seemed startled, but turned to me.

"We have to touch noses," he muttered to me. I touched his nose with mine.

"Pantherpaw! Pantherpaw!" the Clan cheered.

"What do you want me to do?" I asked him quietly.

"Sh."

"You are dismissed."

"Congratulations, Pantherpaw," a black and white tomcat meowed. I dipped my head to him.

"Panther_paw_," Sharpclaw ordered, "get some poppies seeds and sleep; I'll wake you up tomorrow at dawn." I nodded, lashed my tail, and stumbled forward a few steps before I realized.

"Where do I get poppy seeds, though?" But Sharpclaw had turned and walked away, giving orders to other cats. I sighed, and turned back.

"I'll take you to my den," a small silver tabby she-cat with dark gray paws and striking green eyes mewed.

"Thank you... Uh, what's your name?"

"Echosong, and I'm the medicine cat," she replied kindly. I bowed my head lower. "Please don't do that; I'm not really fully trained yet."

"Oh. Sorry. May I please have some poppy seeds so I can sleep?" I requested.

"Of course. Follow me."

I did, noting the course she took to get there. I sat down in the den and watched Echosong rummage around for the small black seeds. She placed them in a leaf and nosed to me. I licked them up.

"Thank you," I meowed. "Can you point me in the direction of the den?"

She nodded, her whiskers twitching with amusement. "Over there." She pointed with her muzzle. I nodded and trotted outside and to the other den.

I walked in, sniffing the air. I couldn't recognize any scents, but I had a feeling I would someday.

I smelled him before I heard him, and I heard him before I saw him. "I thought I told you to go to sleep."

"I got the poppy seeds, so now I'm going to actually follow your orders," I replied. Sharpclaw snorted and padded away.

I laid down in the nest I had used earlier and felt my eyelids droop. I gave in to the sleep, and closed my eyes, letting the cool, black wave of rest coming over me.

"Greetings again, Panther. Or should I say Pantherpaw?"

I opened my eyes and felt no weariness. I blinked at Cloudstar.

"Hi. Why have you come?"

"I wanted to see how you were doing," he replied calmly. "Now that you have joined my Clan, I feel the urge to watch over you even more."

"Why did you feel it before?"

"You will discover that in time."

"Gee, thanks for the help," I mumbled. My head shot up. "I never had dreams before when I had poppy seeds."

"That was before; I gave you a break," he responded. "But it took me a while to get here, and now you have to wake up."

"Get up, Pantherpaw," Sharpclaw growled from somewhere.

"This was a short dream," I declared.

"What are you talking about?"

I opened my eyes to see Sharpclaw's figure looming over me.

"Sorry, I was sleep-talking probably."

I groaned as I rose to my paws. I let out a magnificent yawn and stepped outside, squinting in the bright sunlight.

"I let you sleep in," my mentor explained. "But now you have to learn about the Clan."


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks for the support on my first story! I was almost surprised I didn't have any flames yet, so I think this is a good start. Okay, so thank you reviewers! You guys rock!**

OoOoO

Sharpclaw led me through the gorge, which turned out to be the entire camp. All the cats lived together, he explained, and hunted for each other. The queens and elders were fed first, and there was a strict Clan hierarchy.

"That," he meowed, pointing with his muzzle to a large rock separated from the cliff, "that is where we have Gatherings. A Gathering is when the Clan comes together to talk about what has been going on in the Clan. It comes at every full moon. In the old forest all the Clans joined together peacefully under the full moon to share news."

"There are other Clans?" I asked.

"Yes, in the old forest. The ancient SkyClan cats had been driven out of the old forest because of a lack of territory. There are four others there: ThunderClan, ShadowClan, RiverClan, and WindClan. StarClan watches over all the Clan cats from Silverpelt."

"Silverpelt?"

"The band of stars in the night sky," Sharpclaw told me. "Each star is a fallen warrior."

_So Cloudstar must be from the ancient SkyClan_¸ I thought.

My mentor continued, "StarClan will visit chosen cats in their dreams, or so I am told. I only know that medicine cats have these dreams, along with leaders sometimes, but I don't know any other cat that's had them."

_Think again,_ I said to him in my mind. I listened intently as we toured the camp and he explained Clan culture. It seemed like a nice place to live, and the warrior code wasn't all that bad.

"And we're going to practice some hunting," he was mewing when I tuned back in.

"What?" I asked.

"Obviously you weren't listening. Next time I'll be stricter, but you have a lot on your mind," he scolded. "I prefer it when my warriors and apprentices pay attention. What if I was giving you an order that would have led to the victory or defeat of a major battle that could wipe out the Clan?"

"Well, you weren't," I retorted. The former softness he had shown had vanished.

"I had said we were going to the fallen tree. I'm going to begin teaching you by showing you the territory."

The dark ginger tom bounded off, and I immediately quickened my pace to stay up with him. He leaped on top of a fallen tree while my paws were left to splash in the river. The water was icy cold and sent shivers through me.

"This is the fallen tree, Pantherpaw. You should learn to recognize it now for later reference," Sharpclaw advised.

"Get out of the way," I snapped, easily pushing myself out of the water and onto the log. Sharpclaw tipped back and would have slipped if I hadn't caught him.

"First off," he growled, regaining his dignity after the accident, "you do _not_ order your higher ranker Clanmates. And second, you could have injured me. That is against the warrior code; you're not allowed to harm another Clan member."

"Sorry," I spat.

"You should be, Pantherpaw," he meowed calmly. I thought he muttered, "Why did I let her join?" but I wasn't sure.

"So…, where next?" I inquired, trying to push the event away.

"A rogue's border. Tangle. You don't want to mess with him so I'll show you the boundary. If you go any further he might flip out and shred you."

"A mere rogue?" I scoffed. "Yeah, right. As if that's gonna happen any time soon."

"Tangle is dangerous. And there are others that you should worry about," the dark ginger deputy warned. "Don't think that you can get reckless because you are part of a large group of cats."

"I was like this before," I retorted. "I haven't changed at all."

"You'd better change soon, or else you might not be in a Clan any more."

"Whatever."

"Follow me."

Sharpclaw slid off the log and trotted into the trees. He made a sharp left and almost disappeared. I tracked him down by scent and found him with his back arched, his ears flat against his head, and his fangs bared.

"We told you that you should be content with what you have already, Tangle," Sharpclaw snarled.

"Get away!" Tangle snapped, ignoring Sharpclaw's words. I stared at Tangle, drawing everything in. He had ragged, dirty tabby fur and amber eyes. He was pretty big, too, but I thought I could take him on. "This is my place!"

"No, you've moved into our territory!" my mentor snapped, swiftly losing his patience.

"I don't care; this is _my_ place now. Go away."

"Shut. Up," I meowed. Sharpclaw glanced over at me. My whiskers twitched happily when he looked confused.

"Who said that?" Tangle demanded. "Show yourself!"

"I'm not hiding," I pointed out smugly.

"You're a pipsqueak," he jeered. "You have no right to hush me."

"And you have no right to invade SkyClan's territory," I retorted.

His hackles rose and his eyes flashed. He stalked towards me, shouldered Sharpclaw out of the way, and shoved himself in my face. His muzzle was only half a mouselength away from mine, so we were close enough for me to smell his rank breath. I wrinkled my nose and sneezed.

"You arrogant whelp," he yowled as the flying green specks landed in his eyes.

Tangle lashed out with his claws. They caught my shoulder and I flew to the side, hitting the ground hard. I rolled to avoid his slashing paws and hopped to my paws. He snarled, but was held back.

"Pantherpaw, get away. You don't stand a chance without training," Sharpclaw commanded.

"No, I can fight fine."

"She wants to die, so why stop her?" Tangle sneered.

My mentor hissed and clawed the rogue's flanks. The tabby growled and whirled around to rake his claws over Sharpclaw's face, but I tackled him. Tangle grunted and kicked me away. He bit Sharpclaw's leg and turned to face me. The dark ginger tom fell to the ground, unable to get up.

"It looks as if you're all alone, and you're about to be crowfood."

"It takes one to know one," I teased, my fear rising. I wouldn't show it and I hid my fear-scent.

Tangle hissed and crept towards me, his belly low to the ground. He lashed his tail as he watched me. I didn't move, instead trying to predict where he would lunge. But, to my surprise, he straightened his spine and his features calmed.

"You aren't worth it. Come back when you can fight."

"Are you afraid?" I hissed.

"Afraid? Of you? Don't make me laugh. Take your precious Sharpclaw and go away. I've already told you this is my place now."

I was still bristling. I didn't trust this cat as I inched towards my mentor. Tangle sat down and ignored me. I kept an eye on the rogue as I whispered to my mentor.

"Are you okay, Sharpclaw?"

"I'm fine," he groaned.

"Can you walk?" I asked.

"Yes. I'm stronger than you, remember." I rolled my eyes. He was too proud.

Sharpclaw struggled to his paws and limped in the direction of the fallen tree. He stopped and swiveled his ears backwards to check if I was following. I dashed passed the tabby rogue and took a place next to the dark ginger cat.

The deputy limped, occasionally breathing in sharply because of the pain. We traveled the small distance slowly until he collapsed in the shallowest part of the river. His trickling blood seeped into the water, making small creeks of the red in the clear river.

"Echosong!" I yowled. "Sparrowpelt! Leafstar! Somebody, come here!"

A few cats emerged from their dens, and the silver tabby medicine cat hurried over to Sharpclaw. She sniffed the wound.

"It was a vein, but it isn't bleeding too badly. He'll have some trouble training for a while, but this isn't a bad wound."

"I told you, Pantherpaw."

"He was limping, though," I meowed.

"That was probably because it hurt," Echosong explained.

"It didn't hurt me one bit," Sharpclaw protested.

"Oh, stop it, Sharpclaw," the medicine cat shushed. "Come to my den."

"Pantherpaw, go and tell Leafstar what happened."

"Whatever."

"Say 'Yes, Sharpclaw.'"

"_Yes, Sharpclaw_," I imitated, echoing his words.

Echosong led my mentor away to give him herbs. I lapped up some of the water, then padded towards Leafstar's den. As I passed the nursery I smiled, hearing the kits arguing inside. As I drew closer to Leafstar's den, I glanced up at the sky. The trees cast cooling shadows over the edge, and I paused for a moment, enjoying the darkness I was used to.

"Pantherpaw?" I whipped around to see the cream and brown tabby leader. "Were you looking for me?"

"Yes, Leafstar," I replied. "Sharpclaw was injured by Tangle, a rogue who has decided to move his territory into ours."

"Where was this?" she asked.

"In the open patch of land between the fallen tree and the rest of the forest."

"Thank you for reporting, Pantherpaw. You can have the day off."

"Uh… thank you, I think. But what will I do?"

My leader chuckled. "Anything you want."

"Anything?"

"Anything," she repeated.

I had an idea of what to do.

"Thank you!" I turned to leave, whirled around, dipped my head to her, and returned on my way out.

I skidded down the path to the medicine cat's den. I walked in and saw Sharpclaw sitting impatiently in a nest. Echosong had some herbs out and was putting them on my mentor's paw. The ginger tom noticed me and flicked his tail for me to join him.

"What are you doing here, Pantherpaw?"

"I thought I would say hi," I responded. "Leafstar said I had the day off."

"Don't go attack Tangle," Sharpclaw growled, seeming to read m mind.

"Leafstar said _anything_ I wanted to do."

"And I say no!"

"She's the leader!"

"I'm your mentor!"

"You're only the deputy," I pointed out. He narrowed his eyes.

"Echosong, could you watch my apprentice for me? Could you teach some things while I'm in here?" Sharpclaw suggested.

"Of course, Sharpclaw," Echosong purred. "I can teach her some herbs so she knows them."

"Thank you," my mentor meowed, dipping his head respectfully. Whoa, I didn't think I'd ever see him do that.

"But since she has the day off, I think she can go and explore."

"Thank you!" I mewed as Sharpclaw hissed, "Echosong! Don't encourage her."

"Go on, and be careful, Pantherpaw," the silver tabby meowed merrily.

I nodded and raced out of the den. I followed my paw steps back into the forest. I heard voices and crouched down. I stalked towards the sounds, and peeked out of a bramble bush. I held back a gasp because I saw Tangle sitting in the middle of a circle of rogues.

He stopped speaking and peered right at the bush I was hiding in. I was guessing he had seen me. This would not be fun.

OoOoO

**Yeah, really bad cliffy again. Thank you for all the cats, I don't need any more. Yay! Okay, so... yeah. I hope you liked the chapter! **


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you for all of the cats! They were really useful, and I already have the bad-guy picked out. Also, thank you HawkfrostLover945 and abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz for letting me know about killing those cats.**

**Disclaimer: Do I really have to do this every chapter? Oh well… I don't own anything in this story except my own characters. If I owned Warriors, it would be very different. :)**

**OoOoO**

I gulped and tried to back up. I crouched down low, wishing I had listened to Sharpclaw and not come. I hid my fear-scent and kept my fur flat.

Tangle muttered to pale ginger cat with darker stripes and flicked his tail. She nodded and turned to me. One of her eyes had a long scar across it. I thought it was a little disgusting, but that was okay, seeing as she was an enemy.

The she-cat raised her hackles and bared her fangs. Uh-oh. I backed up, preparing to run at a moment's notice, but she reacted first. The ginger leaped towards me and was sprinting at top speed. I spun around and tried to escape, but wow, was she fast! She overtook me soon and tackled me to the ground.

"Ow," I grunted as we thudded on the ground, dust flying into the air.

"Get up," the ginger snarled.

"Mouseclaw, be a little nicer. This kit was one of our kind not long ago; we should treat her hospitably," Tangle ordered.

The she-cat narrowed her eyes and growled. I scrambled to my paws and licked my chest nervously. I hated being a captive; it went against my personality completely.

A massive black and dark gray tom was sent to me. He narrowed his creepy, icy gray eyes and unsheathed his impressive claws. I flattened my ears and snarled.

"Just come with me," he sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Why?" I spat, trembling slightly but still wanting to keep a tough front.

A mottled ginger tom with dark amber eyes padded up now. I glanced over his shoulder and gasped. The cats were spread out, and I was amazed by the number of cats. It was more than double the size of SkyClan!

"She-cat," the ginger tom commanded, "come with us. We outnumber you by a lot. It would be logical to just obey us."

"Let me think about that…. No!" I snapped bravely. The mottled tom pulled his lips back in the beginnings of a snarl when the larger, darker tom cut in.

"Leave her Blaze; she's not worth it."

"Shadowstalker, you don't know what you're talking about," Tangle yowled.

Shadowstalker shot a glare at me. I crouched down and arched my back. I didn't like having the gazes of so many cats on me; it felt as if they were burning my pelt off.

"Pantherpaw, I knew you would get in trouble." I pricked my ears. Was that…

"Sharpclaw!" I meowed joyfully as I whirled around.

I was filled with merriment (of a sort) when I saw almost all of SkyClan standing behind Leafstar and Sharpclaw.

Sharpclaw lashed his tail, and his fur bristled. He shot a glare at me, then his gaze softened and he flicked his tail for me to stand beside him. I scrambled to obey, actually glad to receive a command.

"Hey, Tangle, were you too afraid to come after me? You had to attack my apprentice instead?" Sharpclaw taunted.

"I'm not afraid to fight you, Sharpclaw of SkyClan," Tangle growled. "I told you this was my land, and these cats are going to help me assert myself. I will be ruler of this territory and beyond."

"Yeah right," my mentor scoffed. "You don't have the leadership abilities."

"But some of _these_ cats do, and I am very good at giving… advice," Tangle retorted smugly.

"You would manipulate us?" the cat Blaze snapped.

"Yes," a strangely patterned brown tom growled. The word that came to mind was… marble. His eyes flashed. "I agree; we trusted you, and all you wanted to do was control us through other cats to accomplish your own twisted desires?"

"I don't think 'twisted' is the correct word," Tangle replied, not caring about the reactions of the rogues.

"Get out," a strangely-patterned black tom growled. "Get away, Tangle, before we rip you to shreds."

The ragged tabby's eyes narrowed furiously. They locked on me, and I think I saw a glint of anger and maybe even some longing in them. But then an uncomfortable gleam sparked in them—a spark of an idea.

"As you say, grand ruler," Tangle mocked. He dipped his head to all of us and bounded away, laughing manically.

"Thank you," I murmured after a few seconds.

"It's what a Clan does, Pantherpaw," Sharpclaw meowed. I was surprised to hear kindness in his words. "We look out for each other. I even had to argue with Echosong to make her let me come. My paw isn't fully healed yet, you know. You might be the reason I die tonight of infection."

My head jerked up in shock. My eyes were wide, and Sharpclaw must have noticed the look on my face, for he twitched his whiskers happily.

"I'm just joking," he explained. I was so caught up in my conversation with my mentor that I hadn't noticed what Leafstar had been saying to the rogues.

"Please come," she finished as I tuned in.

"Where and when, again?" a cat called out.

"Here, at the quarter moon after the full. It give you time to think about it. I would like it if all of you attended," my leader responded.

The rogues began muttering to each other. I glanced up at my dark ginger mentor, and saw that all of his attention was diverted on the large mass, at least until he twitched his ear at me and winked inconspicuously. I felt a purr rising in my throat, but I pushed it down. Now was not the time to be distracted by handsome toms.

What? Did I just call my mentor handsome? No way! Not me! But I did… I was very confused…. How could I have feelings for Sharpclaw?

"Stop looking at me like that!" Sharpclaw snapped. I blinked and shook myself. "We're leaving."

Indeed we were. Or, should I say, the others were. They weren't waiting for us. Wait, no… a tortoiseshell she-cat was waiting—Cherrytail, I recalled. I think Leafstar called her that. She flicked her tail at Sharpclaw, who nodded to me to follow.

I glanced over my shoulder and gazed at the rogues. I remembered my life as a loner, but it was only a couple of days ago that I joined SkyClan. I had been very nervous, but I had been pretty pressured, too. These cats had been gathering for a while, I guessed. Come to think of it, I _had_ smelled different kinds of cats a while ago, before I even noticed the Clan.

"Pantherpaw, pay attention to the world around you!" Sharpclaw reminded me as he swiped my paws from under me. I stumbled and smacked his face with my forepaw.

Sharpclaw was a little unprepared for that, and I'm happy that my claws hadn't slid out because that would have been a bad mark. My mentor raised his head nobly and returned to his marching gait. I rolled my eyes and sighed, thinking of how toms are so weird.

"Yo, she-cat!" a tom's voice—around my age—yowled. I turned to see a mostly black tom with ice-blue eyes bounding up to me.

"My name's not 'she-cat,'" I snarled, offended by the nickname.

"Okay, whatever. Are you in this Clan thingy?" he asked, ignoring my retort.

"I don't know; who am I taking to, and why should you care?"

"Pantherpaw, let's go," Sharpclaw growled. "This rogue will find out enough on his own."

The rogue tom narrowed his eyes and whirled around. I growled and sheathed and unsheathed my claws. Those rogue toms better not hit on me in the Clan, or they would feel my claws!

"Pantherpaw, don't overreact. He's a young tom, and you're… well, you're… um…." Sharpclaw stammered, confident at first but rapidly losing it.

Was he trying to say I was pretty? "Thanks for the attempted compliment," I meowed, hoping he didn't recognize the puzzlement in my voice or on my face. He let out a breath and turned again to continue, but we were already by the fallen tree.

"That took you a while," Echosong commented, a little amused.

"Yeah, well, stuff happened," Sharpclaw muttered. I shook my head and began to pad towards the apprentice den.

"Pantherpaw!" Leafstar called. I looked to where the noise came from and saw Leafstar standing like a lone tree in the middle of a field on the Rockpile.

"Yes, Leafstar?" I yowled up to her.

"Come to my den. Just follow my scent if you can't remember," she added. I grunted and trotted to her den, recalling the route well enough.

"Leafstar? It's Pantherpaw. Did you want something from me?" I announced.

"Yes. Come in, Pantherpaw."

I ducked through, into the dark cave. Leafstar was sitting in the middle of the den on a nest of moss. She gestured with her muzzle for me to sit down. I did, and began washing my face.

"Pantherpaw, I wanted to talk to you about the rogues." She paused. If she was expecting a reaction, she didn't get one and so continued. "I'm worried about your response to having so many cats come. Most of them are about your age, I think, and I don't know how you would feel. You were quite reluctant to join with just us here, but now we are about to double the size of SkyClan. Are you comfortable with this?"

"Why should it matter if I'm comfortable if the Clan is stronger?" I drawled, slowly moving my paw away from my ear.

"Everybody in the Clan is important. Do you understand that? Even you."

My eyes flew open from their drooped position. "Even me? _Even me?_" I hissed. "You say that as if I'm not worthy to be here. Am I worthy to be here? I'm not worth much, am I?"

"That's not what I meant, Pantherpaw," Leafstar cut in angrily. She seemed frustrated enough by my conclusion. "I think you don't have any self-confidence or self-esteem. From what I've seen, you keep putting yourself down."

"Yeah, right, that's why I brag so much," I groaned sarcastically.

"Yes, it is," the tabby leader replied. "You want to raise yourself up to make you think differently, but you can always put yourself down again. You are starving for praise. What happened? Why are you like this? Did you experience something as a kit?"

"That's none of your concern!" I snapped. She had hit a soft spot for me. "You don't need to know my past!"

I leaped to my paws, not realizing that my fur was bristling. I whirled around and stormed out of the den.

"You are excused," Leafstar howled behind me, but I wasn't paying attention.

I sprinted out of there as fast as I could, hoping no cat would see me. I slipped on my way, near some rocks, but all I really got was a scratch on my flank where I couldn't see. I continued my way through the large camp. I didn't really know where I was going, but my paws led me to the medicine cat's den. I don't know why, but I felt that Echosong and Sharpclaw were my only friends in the Clan, even though I'd only been there for a couple days.

"Pantherpaw?" Echosong padded out. "Is Leafstar finished with you?" She sniffed me."Are you okay?"

"I was finished with her," I growled, ignoring the last sentence. The pretty she-cat understood.

"Come on in. I don't have anything for you to do."

"Make her get herbs!" Sharpclaw joked from further in.

"Be quiet, Sharpclaw," Echosong shushed. "Pantherpaw is going through some trouble."

"What's wrong?" The deputy poked his head out from behind a wall, it seemed. His ears were pricked and his eyes were alert.

"A conversation gone wrong," I explained.

"Oh. Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, concern obvious in his voice.

"No thanks," I replied. "Just sitting here is fine."

"Okay. Echosong, when do you suppose I'll be able to do warrior stuff again?"

"Around the time of the meeting," Echosong meowed, sniffing herbs.

"Before or after?" Sharpclaw laid down on his mossy nest and licked his paw.

"Before. And stop licking your paw! I don't want anything to happen to it."

"It itches!" Sharpclaw complained angrily.

"I don't care; leave it alone."

"What am I supposed to do, then?" he growled.

"Sleep," the silver tabby suggested simply. "I have a feeling you need rest."

"I'm not tired," SkyClan's deputy grumbled.

"You sound like a kit," I laughed. I had had a feeling that Sharpclaw would perk me up, and I was right.

"Did I hear happiness?" Sharpclaw teased. I flattened my ears and pretended to be hurt.

"Well, that was harsh. I can be happy."

"_Sure_ you can," he replied.

I yawned and bent my spine to stretch. The dark ginger deputy gazed at me he entire time, no emotion showing in his eyes. I finished my luxurious, relaxing movements and stared at my paws self-consciously.

"Echosong," I meowed. "I feel kinda strange."

"What's wrong, Pantherpaw?" she asked concerned.

"I-I feel… I feel kind of… weird," I mewed in a daze.

I had a feeling my eyes were rolling to the back of my head, and I was trembling frighteningly. I staggered to the side, and the world seemed to spin around me. I wasn't able to think, and the last thing I remember before blacking out was Sharpclaw's concerned face and his yowl.

"Pantherpaw!"

**OoOoO**

**That cliffhanger sucked, didn't it? I'm sorry for not updating in, like, a month, but there was a lot going on for me. Oh well. :D I promise to update soon (and have a non-sucky chapter like this one)! Oh, btw, I'm not taking anymore cats, so… sorry if you posted one after I finished the new allegiances and didn't see this. I can change the stuff later. Sorry. Anyways… yeah. I know what's going to happen now, and I don't have a writer's block anymore! Yay!**

**Yeah, I'm done now. Thank you to all of my reviewers for making me want to continue. (Especially my first flamer, FlameFlameFlame666. I was expecting one sooner.) **


	5. Chapter 4

** Disclaimer: really, the fact that it's labeled "Disclaimer" should give you the idea already. Okay, I don't own any of this except Pantherpaw and everything about her... and the plot... yeah.  
**

**A/N: Yay! I'm back! At least it didn't take me a month to write this one! Actually, I wrote it around midnight (a magical time, indeed), but I waited until I had woken up (whether that was morning or not) to post this one, so… w00t! I think this one kinda sucks, actually (I mean, she's in the medicine cat's den! When is that not boring?). But on with the chapter!**

**OoOoO**

I groaned, and a strange scent wafted into my nose.

"Do I smell… flowers?" I mumbled, with much effort.

"Sh, Pantherpaw," a deep voice reassured me. "You're gonna be just fine."

"What are ya talkin' 'bout?" I asked groggily, my eyes still closed. "Of course I'm fine!"

"Sharpclaw, don't say anything. She obviously doesn't remember yet," a sweeter voice meowed.

I began to force my eyes open—it was quite painful, in fact— and tried to look around without moving. Two cats loomed over me, both looking concerned. A dark ginger pelt seemed to be pacing farther away.

"I-I'm sorry, Leafstar," I coughed out. "I know that was a… bad thing to do."

"It's alright, Pantherpaw. I believe you did what you did with a cause," the tabby leader mewed calmly.

"But it still wasn't good!" I protested as I attempted to sit up. Agony shot through my entire body, and I collapsed back onto the moss nest.

"Stop moving! You need to rest, not run around!" the ginger in the back snapped.

"Sharpclaw!" Leafstar scolded at the same time Echosong comforted me with, "That's just Sharpclaw showing that he cares."

"You say whatever you want. I'm going out."

"What about your paw?" I called after him. He didn't respond, and I shot a confused glance at the she-cats next to me. "What happened to me, anyway?"

"All I know is that you had a huge, very deep mark on your side. How did you not notice it before?" the tabby medicine cat meowed.

"I-I don't know," I replied, my strength returning quickly. "I guess it was when I fell on some rocks when I was leaving Leafstar's den."

"I did notice something on the rocks, but I didn't think it was important," Leafstar mewed thoughtfully.

"I guess that was either fur or blood. I think I was too angry to really pay attention to anything. Did you realize anything was wrong, Echosong?" I murmured the first two sentences.

"I believe Sharpclaw did," she recalled. "I don't think you saw anything, but I was pretty sure he thought something was up last moon."

"Last _what_?!" I yowled. I flattened my ears when the echo in camp reached the den.

"I had to take time to find out what happened. You might have been bleeding on the inside, too, but I don't know if that's possible," Echosong explained. She added, with a much brighter voice, "Besides, you're all better now, Pantherpaw. You still need rest, but I'm sure Leafstar wouldn't mind if I taught you something about herbs?"

Leafstar's whiskers twitched. "Of course you may, Echosong. Meanwhile, I have a deputy to find." As she was padding out, I could have sworn I heard her mutter "Again."

"Okay, Pantherpaw, this plant is marigold. It helps keeps wounds from being infected. I used it on your cut. Oh! This is a juniper berry. They…."

I remained as focused as I could on Echosong's lesson, but I wasn't sure if I would remember all of the herbs. I was a little shocked when she began teaching me about how to mix herbs to heal cats even better.

"…so when you put—" she was explaining when I interrupted.

"When are the rogues meeting?"

"What? Oh, that's tonight."

"Tonight?!" I gasped, leaping to my paws. Doing that was a mistake. I crumbled back down, and rolled over to a more comfortable position.

"Yes."

"But you said Sharpclaw's paw wouldn't be better until the meeting!"

"I also said I hoped it would get better before then. He spent all his time in here watching you, instead of keeping you out of trouble."

"But it couldn't have been a moon ago when I met Tangle?"

"Moon? Did I say moon? I was teasing. Of course you haven't been asleep for a moon."

"So… how long, then?"

"I'm afraid I couldn't tell you. You could ask Sharpclaw, but he _wouldn't_ tell you."

"Why can't you tell me?"

"Leafstar."

That certainly ended our conversation. I gazed around as well as I could.

"So..." I began, trying to start a conversation after several awkward, silent minutes. "When do you think I'll be able to move again?"

"Do you mean _can_ or _may_?"

"I don't understand."

"You probably _can_ move around in a few days, but you _may_ move in a quarter moon, after I'm absolutely sure it's not infected," she told me.

I sighed. "What am I supposed to do until then?"

"Sharpclaw visits often to have me check his paw," Echosong replied, hinting at something more.

"I don't like your tone," I retorted, pretending to take serious offense.

"You're right—medicine cats don't know about romance or love."

I gulped and closed my eyes. Sharpclaw had once told me that medicine cats can't have mates. If the medicine cat noticed something, what did the rest of the Clan think? I was afraid to know.

"Hey, Echosong, I think I have a thorn in my pad," Sharpclaw announced as he limped in.

"Show me the paw," she commanded.

The dark ginger tom lifted his paw and let her inspect it.

"There's nothing there."

"I could have sworn I felt something!"

"I can only guess what," Echosong groaned. I think I saw her wink at me, but I'm not sure. Was she trying to put the Sharpclaw and me together? That would be very odd. No, I think she was just hinting that our relationship was deeper than a mentor/apprentice relationship normally was. I wasn't sure if I liked that she was thinking like that.

The _idea _was okay.

What?! No, it was _not_ okay! What do I mean "it sounds okay"? The whole thing was making me uncomfortable. Maybe I shouldn't have joined SkyClan at all.

"I think I should stay in here, though, just so you can make sure," Sharpclaw finished what I presumed was a monologue or something.

"I think that's for me to decide." She yawned.

"I believe you're too tired out taking care of Pantherpaw, so—"

"Absolutely not!" Echosong stretched out the syllables in "absolutely." What was she going for? "You don't know the medicines she needs!" Of course. A classic cover-up. The "you-lack-something-necessary-for-this" excuse.

"Oh. Well, I should still stay here. Pantherpaw is bored out of her mind, and it's only her first day awake here."

"Sharpclaw, it's only been two hours. Don't you have a meeting to go to, anyway?"

"Yes," he muttered, seeming a little dejected. Who was this cat, and what did he do with Sharpclaw? This was way out of character for him!

"You better keep those rogues in line," I mewed. "You wouldn't want any of them to come to the camp and attack us."

"No rogue's going to get past me!" he growled fiercely. "The Clan comes first!"

"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Rockpile for a Clan meeting." Leafstar's call rang around the camp, and I could visualize in my mind cats leaking out from several places.

"I have to go," Sharpclaw announced, somewhat unnecessarily, as he padded out of the den.

Echosong didn't leave; instead, she sat by the entrance, but her body faced me a little and her head was tilted to be able to watch me. I think she was worrying too much, but maybe she wasn't.

"The cats who are coming with me to the meeting are Sharpclaw, Sparrowpelt, and Cherrytail. The other cats will stay here, with Patchfoot in charge. By dawn, the numbers of SkyClan will certainly have doubled!" There was much cheering at the end of her final statement.

I could hear the cats trotting away from camp—and the den—and I was glad I was in a position to watch them for a little while.

"Well, let's hope she's right about our numbers. We only have four warriors, do you know? Rainfur died, Shortwhisker—Hutch, I should say—left to go back home, and Firestar and Sandstorm aren't around to help us anymore."

"Firestar and Sandstorm?" I asked curiously.

"They made a long journey and helped us rebuild SkyClan. We were all rogues and kittypets at one time, too, you know."

"Can you tell me more about them, please?"

"Well, since you said please… But I wasn't here the entire time, so I don't know the story as well as some other cat. Sharpclaw would be the best one to ask about it because he—and Clovertail, of course—were the first cats to meet Firestar and Sandstorm, aside from Skywatcher. I'm sorry to tell you that Skywatcher died before the other Clan cats left."

"Other Clan cats?"

"Yes. Firestar and Sandstorm are from the Clan ThunderClan. There are other Clans besides them, too; RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan. SkyClan used to be there, too, but our ancestors were driven out long ago."

"Yours."

"Excuse me?"

"You said 'our ancestors,' but I think you meant they were your ancestors."

"You don't know that," she replied, moving to sit next to me. "You also could be related to them, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, sure."

"Alright. Where was I?"

"SkyClan was driven out long ago."

"Right. Well, Firestar had a sign from the cat who was leader of SkyClan at that time. His name was Cloudstar."

When she said the name "Cloudstar," my memory clicked. The story was eerily familiar, but I couldn't recall where I had heard it before. Cloudstar, I knew, was that cat that came to me in my dreams. He spoke of Firestar, and being driven out.

"Uh, Echosong?" I cut in.

"Yes?"

"May I please have some poppy seeds for sleep?"

"Of course; but you know Pantherpaw, you can't tell sleep when to come or go."

"I know, but I really need to sleep right now."

"Alright, just hold on a heartbeat," she replied as she pulled out a leaf. "You know what to do."

"Thank you," I mewed as I licked up the tiny seeds. "I need these."

"Should I wake you when the cats come back?"

"Yes please," I whispered, my eyelids drooping already. "Thanks, Echosong."

My eyes flew open, and I was weary no more. I was in the middle of a forest with trees. The trees had tall branches, I noticed, but I felt I could easily jump onto one.

"Cloudstar?" I yowled. "Hey, Cloudstar! I've got more than a few questions for you, Cloudstar!"

There was no reply.

"Is _anybody_ around?" I howled.

Again, there was no reply. The forest was strangely silent. Not a bird sang, there were no squirrels scurrying up and down trees, no mice nibbling on a snack, no voles by a river, no fish in a stream. The forest was… dead. I did the worst possible thing—I panicked.

My cries became more desperate as I leaped from tree to tree, searching for something other than woods. After a while, I climbed to the top of a tree and tried to gaze out, but something pushed me, and I lost my balance. I toppled to the ground, feeling crushed physically. My pain from the waking world returned, and I felt flames all around me. The outline of a cat appeared on a branch.

"Cloudstar?" I asked weakly.

"No," a sinister voice snickered. "Nobody's going to save you, little kit. Nobody can. Nobody even _wants_ to. You are all alone here, all alone in the sea of flames." The words sounded as if the speaker was standing right next to me.

"Who is it?" I screeched, fear engulfing me. "What's happening?"

"And your precious Sharpclaw won't come. He's not coming to help you. He won't come. Sharpclaw can't. If he were alive, anyway, and I know he wouldn't. I could see it coming. Aren't you happy that I saved you, Panther? Aren't you joyful that I pulled you away from the rejection you'll get from him?" the cat hissed mercilessly.

"No…. No, you can't be!" I yowled. "You can't be back!"

"Oh, but I am. And I am coming for you, my dearest Panther. Remember the sea of flames. Remember the fire." The voice faded, but I was still terrified and writhing on the ground in agony.

"Stop it!" I cried. "Stop it! Cloudstar! Sharpclaw! Somebody! Help me, please!"

"What are you talking about, Pantherpaw?" Echosong's sweet voice rang in my head, but it seemed so far away, so distant. The shadow of the horror still stood above me. The fire was still surrounding me.

"Go ahead and wake up. We'll see each other again. Be happy that you still have time… for now." The shadow thinned and disappeared.

I forced my eyes open to see Echosong prodding me. Her green eyes were full of worry, and I heard Leafstar speaking in the clearing.

"These are now the new members of SkyClan!" she was ending.

"SkyClan! SkyClan!" the cats chanted.

"Because there are so many of you, nobody will have to sit a vigil. Apprentices follow Cherrytail, and warriors follow Sparrowpelt. You are dismissed."

"Hey, did you see how many cats came? Almost every cat there—Pantherpaw! What happened?!"

"He's back," I whispered, a. "He's back, and he's coming."

"What? Who's back? What are you talking about Pantherpaw?"

"I always wanted to keep my past hidden and locked away, but since… _he's _coming," I shuddered at the word "he", but continued, "coming to attack SkyClan, I guess I have to tell you."

**OoOoO**

**Oooooo. Who's coming? Why? What is Pantherpaw trying to hide? What is Pantherpaw_really_ like? You'll have to find out in the next chapter! But… I'll be nice. I'll give a preview. (even if it's a tiny thing)  
**

"_Yes, he did. He was fear for me. If I thought of fear, I saw his face, I heard his voice. He is the reason… the reason I can't be with my mother anymore."_

"_Why?" Sharpclaw inquired. "What happened?"_

_I shivered. It wasn't a story I wanted to tell. "Should I leave out the specific details?"_

**There! I know, really crappy (not to mention, boring stuff. Medicine cat den always is, but it **_**is**_** important), but… as of now, it is 12:46 AM as I am typing this. Yay staying up late/early!**

**Yeah. Yay obvious villains! Or is it? Hmmm… Is he just a memory, a nightmare? Or is he really coming? Yay! Okay, that was a lot of "yays" in one author's note. I finish now with…. Thank you reviewer(s)! You guys are still great:D**

** One more thing (I know, I just won't go away)... sorry that this chapter is really bad, with a really bad cliffhanger and preview. That was a really short preview! Wowzers. Or Jinkeez. Whatever. w00t! I'm done now. :)**


	6. Chapter 5

**Yay! Updating is fun:D Okay… Yeah. I don't own anything that Erin does… because it's theirs… and not mine, obviously xD**

**OoOoO**

"What's so important, Pantherpaw?" Sharpclaw inquired nervously. "What happened in the past?"

"As I said when we first met, my mother and I lived by the Long Water, and she met my father there. But I had other family, you could call it. My father had an uncle, who had a kit. That kit's mate was named Gargoyle."

"What's a gargoyle?" Echosong asked.

"I don't know, but I guess he did. And he liked my mother… and me."

"Wouldn't he be too old for you?" Sharpclaw questioned.

"And didn't he already have a mate?"

"Yes and no, Echosong. He did have a mate, but she mysteriously disappeared one day. And Sharpclaw, no, he wasn't. My mother was very young when I was born—only about fifteen moons. He was that age, too, and when I was born, he was very watchful. He was frightening, and he had bad intentions. Mother and I…" I choked on my words and trailed off.

"Did he do something to you two?" Sharpclaw snarled, unsheathing his claws. "How bad was he? Did he kill cats for no reason?"

"Yes, he did. Soon…. He became fear for me. If I thought of fear, I saw his face, I heard his voice. He is the reason… the reason I can't be with my mother anymore."

"Why?" Sharpclaw inquired. "What happened?"

I shivered. It wasn't a story I wanted to tell. "Should I leave out the specific details?"

My mentor and the medicine cat shared a glance, and the ginger deputy shook his head. He gazed kindly at me and meowed, "No, you don't have to tell us now. You can tell us when the time is right for you. We won't prod, or tell any cat about this."

"But—" I protested. They had to know about the dream!

"No buts. You have to relax. That fall was pretty damaging."

"Sharpclaw…" I mewed as he began to pad out. "Sharpclaw, I have to tell you because he's coming!" My mentor stopped and whirled around.

"What do you mean?"

"We have to prepare for him."

"How do you know this?" Echosong interrogated gently.

"In a dream," I explained. "He returned with the sea of flames."

The deputy's ears pricked. "What's that?"

"Not that again," I muttered, a painful scene flashing before my eyes. "No, not again. Mom! Mother…. Not again. Not again!"

"Pantherpaw, calm down!" the dark ginger tom cried.

"Yo, I heard that— what happened here?" The mostly black tom had appeared again, but his icy eyes weren't joking this time.

"Nothing to worry about, Freezefang," Sharpclaw mewed swiftly. "Don't you have something to do?"

"Starlingpaw is covered with thorns, somehow, and Hidingpaw was freaking out," Freezefang explained bluntly. "Is there anything we can do?"

"Pull out as many thorns as you can, but bring her here," Echosong ordered. "Pantherpaw, are you alright?"

Freezefang shrugged his shoulders and padded away, most likely to get Starlingpaw and Hidingpaw.

I twitched, wishing Gargoyle's cruel laugh would disappear from my mind. I blinked, staring at Sharpclaw for a moment, but I soon recognized him as Sharpclaw and not Gargoyle.

"What is it, Pantherpaw?" he asked. "I think you should sleep."

"No!" I protested quickly. "No, I can't go back to sleep. He'll come to me again! Just stay here, please, Sharpclaw. Stay with me."

He glanced at Echosong, who nodded, and laid down next to me. "Don't worry, I won't leave. Gargoyle can't get past me."

"Thank you," I breathed. "But I forgot—you're deputy. You can't stay. Please, forget what I just said."

"Are you sure? I can always let Patchfoot take over for a little while, or something," he offered.

"No, you have your responsibilities. All I have are some bad dreams."

"If you insist."

"Sharpclaw! Aren't you deputies supposed to keep the fresh-kill pile from getting low?!" an elderly voice snapped viciously. "I'm taking some cats with me to hunt. And any rogue that we meet will be taken care of properly."

"Fangtail, don't kill anybody. If it's Tangle, bring him here. Take Shadowstalker, Mouseclaw, Blackpaw, and Spottedpaw. That should be enough. Oh, and Fangtail," Sharpclaw added, "don't do anything stupid. You're pretty old; I don't want a good warrior getting hurt unnecessarily."

"Yeah, okay." The cat yowled for the others chosen for the patrol, and they trotted out together, or that's what I guessed.

"I'm sorry about this. I'm just a weight for SkyClan, holding it back," I apologized.

"What in StarClan's name are you talking about?" Sharpclaw retorted loudly. "You don't hold SkyClan back! Who was it that found Tangle's group soon enough to keep SkyClan from being attacked? Who was an example of how a Clan takes care of all of its cats?"

"I was an example of how you take care of cats?" I murmured.

"It was nothing bad, you know," my mentor stammered. "Y-you know, just because you w-were hurt, an-and we helped you."

"Is that so?" I questioned mischievously. "Well, I can also be an example of how strong a Clan cat can be."

I breathed deeply, and used all of my energy to force myself to a sitting position. It was fairly easy, surprisingly, seeing as it was only a little while ago when I couldn't, but it was a very different thing to sit up than to stand and walk around.

"Hey, Echosong, didn't you say it would take a long time for me to be able to walk around? How come it's so soon since I had trouble sitting up, but I'm fine now?" I teased.

"I don't know. Maybe because you feel better," the pretty silver tabby suggested.

"Echosong, I've got the two. Frozenclaw was the one who had taken the thorns out, though," Freezefang's voice called. It was slowly becoming a familiar sound for me.

"Thank you. Bring them in, then get Frozenclaw. I want to speak to him."

Three cats padded in—Freezefang, a colorfully flecked black she-cat, and a large, mostly dark brown tabby tom. I guessed the she-cat was Starlingpaw—mainly because she was limping—and the tomcat was Hidingpaw. Why was his name Hidingpaw, though? I forgot the question as I noticed another two cats coming in. A silvery white tom and a white she-cat with silver flecks.

"Ah, Frozenclaw, there you are," Echosong meowed. "I wanted to speak to you."

"What is it?" he inquired quietly. "I put cobwebs where the thorns were, and I had marigold there. Is that okay?"

"That's great! I might have…." I ignored the two as they spoke. Instead, I inspected the newcomers.

"Hi," the white she-cat mewed brightly. "I'm glad that you seem better. My brothers would _never_ be able to take care of themselves, let alone another cat, so I'm very happy that we joined. If something happened to me, I'm afraid to even wonder." She chuckled. "What about you? What about your family?"

I narrowed my eyes and looked away.

"Oh. Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know," she apologized sincerely. "So… why did you join?"

That was a question I could answer.

"I was on the territory, and Sharpclaw here found me. The first thing he did to me was threaten me, but then he pushed me out of a tree. Anyways… you know, I'm not sure why I joined." We stared at each other for a moment, then laughed.

"The reason I joined was to keep my brothers from doing anything else to themselves. Did you know that one time Freeze, well Freezefang now…." I listened as she told her story, and I watched the sun appear in the milky sky.

_Morning already?_ I thought. _What a long night for me!_

"Thank you, Frozenclaw. Alright, everybody out except Starlingpaw, Pantherpaw, and (possibly) Sharpclaw," Echosong announced.

"Bye," the white she-cat meowed.

"What's your name?" I called after her. She didn't hear me, though, and continued.

"Sparklelight," Starlingpaw explained.

"Thanks," I meowed. "I'm Pantherpaw."

"I'm Starlingpaw, nice to meet you."

Echosong trotted towards me. "Pantherpaw, you need to sleep."

"But—"

"No buts. If you rest enough, I might just let you walk more. I'm sure Gargoyle won't come. Just have these poppy seeds."

"Don't you think it's bad that I have so many poppy seeds all the time?" I joked. "I might become addicted."

"I doubt it. No more excuses, Pantherpaw; lick them up." Did her whiskers twitch as I swallowed the seeds? Maybe.

"'Night," I moaned. "Wow, those things work fast."

Again, I opened my eyes, relieved that I was once again in the area I had met Cloudstar in. He was standing there, a long-haired light brown tabby she-cat behind him. He waved his tail at me as I walked towards him. I sniffed him, making sure it really was Cloudstar.

"Don't worry, Pantherpaw," he purred. "I'm not Gargoyle."

"How do you know about Gargoyle?" I hissed, leaping away with my ears flat against my head.

"Don't be so jumpy; you might hurt yourself," he teased. Then he answered, "A friend told me."

"Friend?" I echoed.

"How long has it been? Three, four moons?"

I gasped, and blinked to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. "Mother!" I cried joyfully, running to her.

We purred, and she licked me. We nuzzled until she pulled herself away. She turned her head, and closed her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she forced out.

"What?" I asked, confused as to why she was acting so strangely.

"I-I-I… I can't say. No…no! Stop it; I have to tell her! Why can't you leave us?!" she coughed.

"Now, now, Ebony. You wouldn't want to scare your daughter, would you?"

"No!" I screeched, sprinting past my mother, trying to escape.

"You can't leave, silly kit."

My paws scrabbled on the ground, but I wasn't going anywhere. I whimpered as a large, hulking cat stalked towards me. I skidded to what you might call a halt and tried to back up. I could do that, but I bumped into another cat…s. A huge mass of cats blocked my way.

"Come here, my little Panther," he sweetly suggested. "Why don't you say hello to your uncle Gargoyle? I got all dressed up in that foolish leader's pelt just to see you."

"Get away," I hissed. My fear was too great to hide now.

"Why would I want to leave _you_, Panther?" Gargoyle caressed my shoulder with his tail. It sent chills up my spine.

"You fox-hearted piece of—" I snarled, but he shoved his face in mine.

"Sh, we don't want you to sound like one of those growling savages that traveled around the Long Water, do you?" His black eyes flashed gleefully. He was enjoying this!

"Back off!" I spat, slashing at him with unsheathed claws. "Get away, you pervert!"

He nimbly hopped away, and licked his paw. "That hurts, Panther. It really hurts that you would even try to do that to me. I suppose you don't understand that I can damage you, but you can do nothing to me."

Gargoyle flicked his paw, and his long claws slid out. "Want me to demonstrate?"

"I don't care if you hurt me," I replied arrogantly.

"Physically, you mean?" he sneered. "Oh, that's not what I mean."

His movements were slow as he made sure I understood where he was going. "Mother, run!"

"She can't, Panther. I have summoned her from StarClan. She cannot leave until I allow her to."

"Mother!" I yowled. "Mother!"

**OoOoO**

**Sorry about the bad chapter, but... I don't really know. Really, sorry. Yeah, this update wasn't as soon as I had hoped, nor was it as good. It didn't really go as I planned either, but I guess filler-type chapters don't always. Okay, just wondering—what do you think Gargoyle looks like? I want to know! I already knows what he looks like, so... if you get it right, you get a plushie of whomever you want! Yay! W00T!**

**Right, I forgot- sorry about her ultra fast healing. It's sort of weird, but... yeah. Sorry if it seems strange. **

**Okay, I'm done with this for now (finally!). I will try hard to make the next chapter better (and is updated faster). Yay! Thank you to the reviewers!**


	7. Chapter 6

**I'm back! Aren't you all so happy? 8D**

**Well, I almost decided to delete my FF account and this story, but I chose not to. I know you're all so happy about that. xD**

**Enough of me rambling. On with the story! And I suggest you reread some of it... heh heh...**

**OoOoO**

I yowled for her, but she didn't seem to hear me

I yowled for her, but she didn't seem to hear me. She was there, waiting for Gargoyle to attack her. But… he didn't. He paused and touched her nose, shooting me a look. He sheathed and unsheathed his claws, and slashed Mother. She flew backwards, and hit the ground hard. I whimpered, but unsheathed my claws.

Gargoyle turned to me, his dark gray eyes bright. I shivered and padded up to him. He stared down at me, his enormous size making it impossible for him to look me straight in the eye. He sat down and bent his head to peer at my face.

"I don't care if I can't hurt you; just stay away from her."

"Who said she was real? You're dreaming; anything can happen in a dream," Gargoyle meowed calmly. Why did he have to have personality switches every heartbeat?

"'Anything can happen' isn't necessarily what I want, but it can be, right? So you don't have to be here."

"You can't get rid of dead cats," he explained bluntly. "We come and go as we please."

"Then go away," I snarled, lashing out at him with my forepaws. They sailed through him, but I didn't care. It showed that I meant it.

He warned, "You don't want to fight me."

"I think I do," I retorted. "If you can come and go as you please, go down to SkyClan. I want you to know how I felt during that time, with the sea of flames."

"I would have done that already if I could, precious," he purred.

"What do you mean?" I snarled, backing away.

"Well, _of course_ I can't go down to the real world—I'm not alive," he explained silkily, stepping towards me. "Do you want me to change that?"

"Get away," I growled. "Stay away!"

"Oh, but why would I want to?" Gargoyle's whiskers twitched as he watched me.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up," I chanted to myself. "I need to wake up!"

"You want to leave me, Panther, dearest? I'm offended." Gargoyle's eyes glinted dangerously, however sweetly he was talking. "Why don't you stay with me?"

"I… don't… want to!" I wailed. I was a kit again, Gargoyle was there again.

I squeezed my eyes shut as Gargoyle came even closer. _When I open my eyes, I'll be awake_, I thought desperately. _I _have_ to be awake!_

"Pantherpaw…"

_He never calls me Pantherpaw! I must be waking up!_

"Um… Pantherpaw?"

I opened my eye a smidgen, and then they both flew open. I leaped to my paws and stretched, then I—wait. I stretched? I leaped to my paws? How is this happening? It was a miracle! I was fully healed! But how? Did it matter?

"Pantherpaw, you're kicking me," Starlingpaw groaned from the nest next to me. I gazed around. Echosong was asleep still, and I must have woken Starlingpaw up.

"I'm going out," I announced. "Tell Echosong if I don't get back before she wakes up."

"Okay," she coughed.

I nodded briskly and trotted outside. I breathed deeply, relieved to breathe the fresh air of the camp instead of the musty, smelly medicine cat den. I padded up the cliff, careful not to wake any cat by accident (or on purpose).

Having reached the top of the cliff, I sat down and stared at the stars. They were beautiful; sparkling, silver, bright. The night would be completely dark without the stars, completely evil. The moon would cast some light, but the stars are the things that guide our way and watch over us. Where would we be without the stars?

_Which one are you, Mother?_ I found myself asking. _Are you up there guiding me?_

"Pantherpaw, what are you doing here? You should still be resting."

I jumped, startled, and whirled around. It was Sharpclaw, of course, staring at me curiously. His ears were pricked and his tail was twitching.

"No, I feel fine. It's nothing, really," I replied, shaking my head. "It must be a miracle from StarClan."

"A miracle? Let me see."

Sharpclaw padded towards me to sniff the spot where the wound used to be. As he approached, my skin prickled oddly and I felt warm all over. Sharpclaw sniffed my flank, then glanced at me.

"It must be a miracle from StarClan—there's no sign of an injury at all."

"Nothing there? Are you sure?"

"Positive," he purred. Sharpclaw backed away to stare at me again.

"What?" I asked, self-conscious.

He mused, "I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Pantherpaw, I know this is a little sudden, but do you think you'd like to be my mate?" Sharpclaw offered, stepping towards me.

I blinked in shock. "W-What?"

"I know that I'm your mentor, and that you're very young, but I think we belong together."

As Sharpclaw came closer, I could see Gargoyle in him for a moment. I jumped away and shook my head.

"I'm sorry, but I can't, Sharpclaw. It would be too uncomfortable for me. Besides, what would the Clan think?"

"What does it matter? What they think will only get in the way of our love."

"What love? We barely know each other!" I would never admit I had a crush on him.

"If that's what you believe," he hissed.

I flinched and saw Gargoyle again.

"It is," I whispered.

"Fine, then," he snapped. "If that is how you feel. Since you are fully healed, we will resume training tomorrow at dawn. Don't be late."

He whirled around, lashing his tail as he walked away. I glanced at the sky—it was almost dawn anyway. I sighed and followed my mentor. I hoped he wouldn't make training torture for me.

**OoOoO**

**Yay! End of chapter. O.o What will happen? You'll have to wait for me to write the next chapter (and be not-lazy enough to post it, heh heh...). Yay! Reveiw if you like. I know, I know, it was a crappy chapter, but hey, at least it's a chapter. :)**


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